After DMK Burger & Fish shut down last May, Noyes Street was left without one of its most popular eateries for Northwestern students. But DMK owners David Morton and Michael Kornick were not done with Evanston yet.

Morton and Kornick, partners in the restaurant industry since 2009, are opening a new restaurant early next month at 815 Noyes St., the site that used to house DMK. Arlen’s, their new project named after one of their chefs, will be a fried chicken, sweet tea and tater tots hub aimed at both students and Evanston residents.

The concept for Arlen’s was developed after Kornick and Morton held a contest among chefs who work for their different Chicago area restaurants to determine which direction they should head with their next restaurant endeavor.

“The funny thing about chefs is that they all tell you they make the best fried chicken,” Morton said. “So we thought to settle the score.”

In the chefs’ competition, Britt Arlen of the Fish Bar in Chicago was the unanimous victor, Morton said. As a result, both his name and recipes will now be featured in the new restaurant.

Among Arlen’s menu choices are chicken nuggets, root beer floats, chicken sandwiches, biscuits and an all-day breakfast sandwich. Morton said the restaurant — by popular demand — will also offer five different DMK milkshakes.

Kornick, who lived in Evanston for 15 years, said there are only a few options in Evanston for fried chicken, leaving room in the city’s marketplace for innovation.

“The folks who live around the area and especially the Northwestern students are always looking for something new and delicious and fun,” he said. “We have proven in many neighborhoods where we operate … that we’re capable of creating (great) flavors at reasonable prices in a fun atmosphere.”

Kornick said although the pair is not trying to imitate southern-style fried chicken recipes at Arlen’s, they are hoping the sense of hospitality present in several southern restaurants he has visited can be cultivated in the new restaurant.

As for flavor, he said what differentiates Arlen’s fried chicken from southern-style fried chicken is its mix of spices and buttermilk-soaked breading.

“To some degree, fried chicken seems to have gravitated more to the South than the North,” he said. “Our version is more reminiscent of Asian and southwestern or South American spices.”  

Although visitors can choose to eat at the restaurant, all orders at Arlen’s will be packaged to go. Morton said this was planned with students’ fast-paced lifestyles in mind — which means they can order, pay, throw their food in their backpacks and head to class in minutes.

Morton said he spoke with Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications students last school year regarding the new project. From them, he said he heard about the success of models such as Chipotle or Blaze Pizza, which offer customers the chance to customize their meals. Morton said he was mindful of this feedback when creating Arlen’s.

As part of the initial competition, Morton and Kornick also worked with NU student focus groups to better understand the student perspective regarding not only menu choices and flavor, but also price and portion sizes.

Morton, an Evanston resident, said he and Kornick decided to open Arlen’s in the city because of their ties to the community and the opportunity to work near NU.

“We think Northwestern is an ideal place in the sense that it has a very diverse population,” he said.

Form and Function Marketing, an NU student marketing group, worked with DMK last Fall and Winter Quarters to promote the restaurant among the Evanston and student populations, F&F member Mia Grindon said. The Communication sophomore said she thinks Morton’s and Kornick’s restaurant will appeal to NU’s population.

“It has great potential to be really popular among students,” she said. “It has an offering that really fits the college lifestyle.”

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